VictorySpain is free! After two months of heavy fighting the French military, along with Republican forces, have destroyed the nationalist rebels attempting to seize control in Spain. The Spanish people can now live in peace again. The Nationalists seemed o have victory assured for a while, nearly reaching Seville several times. Ultimately, however, the French military was victorious due to better organization, better equipment and the support of the Spanish people. Here are some pictures portraying the war in it's entirety.
Operation Pentagon, the code-name for a 5-pronged attack on the main Nationalist army
Operation Pentagon; the battle of Saragossa
A Nationalist falls at Saragossa
The crossing of the Arlanzón
The last of the Nationalists being driven out of La Coruna
La Coruna; devastated by war
Operation Pentagon; The Battle of Saragossa The following is a first hand account by Sebastián Bedgard who fought at Saragossa:After the fighting at Tarragona ceased, we were given a few days to rest. I took advantage of those days to rest up as I had twisted my ankle while marching nonstop across treacherous terrain for weeks.
Then on September 19, at 3:00pm, we were called to arms. My battalion met up with others as we converged on Saragossa. We were told that we were to go through the southern farmland, across the south-eastern bridge and into the town.
Until we reached the town there was very little fighting. We met a few peasant rebel groups, but they barely slowed us down. When you shot one, the rest ran away. Damn cowards. When we reached the bridge we found that it had been destroyed by the Fascists in an attempt to stop our advance. The major in charge decided that we should ford the river. He assigned me, one of the best shots, as one of the men to cover those crossing.
At first they seemed to be slipping across unnoticed. However when they were halfway across a flash of light was seen farther north along the shore. Water, blood and body parts flew in the air. It was a trap, and the Fascists had an anti-tank gun set up on the other side.
I pondered the reasoning behind positioning an anti-tank gun here when there were tanks attacking the north side of town for a moment until a nearby Sergent called me back into reality by slapping me on the back and ordering me to get down.
I dived to the ground, and tasted dirt mixed with blood as a banged my mouth on a rock. It was dusk, and thus hard to see, but I thought I could see where the shots were coming from. I fired 3 rounds from my rifle and was rewarded by the body of a Nationalist tumbling down the grassy slope and into the river.
Our men that were crossing were now beginning to scramble up the other side of the river. Many had died in the water but we still greatly outnumbered the Fascists. The Fascists themselves were taking notice of this fact and some started to panic. I saw some of the Nationalists retreating into town, now under heavy bombardment by our artillery. The Sergent next to me called out to those around him to advance into town.
Not wanting to seem a coward in front of my friends, and already embarrassed by by bleeding mouth I followed him down the slope and into the river. I heard a shot whiz by me and bury itself in a soldier behind me. I did not know him. I did not stop. When we reached the other side I was soaked and my kit-bag felt like it weighed 1000 tonnes. The slope was slippery but I among others scrambled up it.
As we crested the top I saw that the Fascists were no-longer along side the river. Their anti-tank gun lay abandoned, corpses strewn around it. They wre retreating towards the cover offered by nearby houses. But as they neared the houses they began to crumple and fall, not just from the fire of our soldiers but the townspeople themselves were firing weapons out of their houses at the retreating Fascists.
They scattered, confused, in all directions. Many crouched down, surrendering and were shot by the townsfolk for their trouble. It took only four hours to clean out the rest of the town, and most of that time was spent figuring out which armed civilians were on each side. The town was in ruins but we had taken it, the Fascists had lost this battle and it cost them the war.
I talked to some of the men and women in the houses that I had seen firing at the Fascists. I asked them what provoked the to do what they did. They told me the Fascists had been cruel. They had killed and abused these people's friends, family and neighbors. When I think of those people and what had been done to them I know why I fought in this war.
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